Rennes caught a cold
Ligue 1, Nancy 0 - 0 Stade rennais. In difficult conditions, Stade Rennais didn’t shine but still manage to salvage a draw from their trip to Nancy. After a lively and balanced first half, the second was more difficult for the Rennais, who never managed to find a way round the Nancéiens.
In the early minutes of the game, Stade Rennes showed full of good intentions in the trail of Pitroipa, back in France after the elimination of Burkina Faso in the African Cup of Nations. It was indeed the Burkinabe international who, after a run by Danzé, hit the first shot on target, without troubling N’Dy Assembé (7’). Nancy’s reply was immediate, but Mollo’s header was well blocked by Costil (9’). Rennes continued to push through Brahimi but Féret couldn’t finish (12’). Nancy, on the back-foot until there, tried to play in counter-attacks to disturb Rennes’ tactics. The pair of Niculae and Mollo combined well and started gaining influence on the game, on a partly frozen pitch. A ground on which Théophile-Catherine and the Rennais struggled to stay on their feet.
The slides and lost ball by Rennes profited to a more serene Nancy team, which used the depth of the pitch perfectly. After half an hour, Rennes emerged by trying to keep the ball possession, especially thanks to Brahimi who multiplied trips across the width of the pitch. But the opportunities were rare. With a concentration of player at the centre of the park, Stade Rennais looked for solutions from the wings while Nancy had more facility to use long balls. In several occasions, Apam and then Kana-Biyik rescued their team by stopping the runs of Niculae and Mollo.
In the second half, the hosts started taking control of the game. From kick-off, Niculae was even testing Costil with a shot (46’). Unable to respond to Nancy’s aggressive pressing for the ball, Rennes replied shyly by Erding, without success (54’, 57’). Well in the game, Nancy was close to opening the score by Mollo, perfectly launched by Niculae, the former Monaco player gave too much angle to his shot in front of Costil (63’).
Focused, the Rennes goalkeeper was tested again on set-pieces (60’, 75’). Nancy remained dangerous, as in this cross from Karaboué to Lemaître without danger for Costil (72’). Rennes had a few attacking flashes, despite being lacking consistency in its intentions. Féret transmitted the ball to Erding, but the Turk’s volley was way out of target (74’). Two minutes later, Costil saved the Stade Rennais with a world class save in front of Niculae (76’). The end of the game was to the advantage of Nancy, who took risks by bringing in Bakar in order to bolster the attacking line. The entrance of Doumbia, at the end of the game, reinforced the Rennes midfield but too late to make a difference on the score board. A good point for Rennes looking at the way the game went. But also more points losts on the leading teams.
Match Facts
AS NANCY LORRAINE 0 - 0 STADE RENNAIS FC
Ligue 1, Game Week 22
Saturday, February 4th, 15:00
Stade Marcel Picot
Attendance : 12 615 spectators
Referee : Hervé Piccirillo
Yellow Cards : Karaboué (67’) and Sami (81’) for Nancy ; Pajot (14’) for Rennes.
Stade rennais FC : Costil - Danzé (cap) (Mavinga 79’), Apam, Kana-Biyik, Théophile-Catherine - M’Vila, Pajot, Féret (Doumbia 77’) - Pitroipa, Erding, Brahimi (Kembo 63’).
Manager : Frédéric Antonetti
AS Nancy-Lorraine : Ndy Assembé - Sami, André Luiz (cap), Puygrenier, Haïdara - Karaboué, Sané, Mangani, Lemaître (Bakar 74’) - Niculae, Mollo.
Manager : Jean Fernandez